Weekend Family Fun!

Home

I'm finally home!
I had a great time in Anaheim at the conference, and an even better time visiting with relatives in Long Beach. After a somewhat strenuous flight home, I spent some time with my sister's family who was in town from Omaha. Then I went up to Crooked Lake, and of course, had a great time. Last night my parents had the whole fam over for grilling out and fireworks, and I was finally able to bring Kelly home. The two of us are both pretty tuckered out!

Off to Omaha

I leave for Omaha in a few hours, and I fly back on Monday afternoon. It will be nice to see little Mary Madeleine, and of course, their new house. I can hardly believe Memorial Day weekend is here already. The weather sure doesn't make it seem like it, but it's here!

Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

I watched Ben and Bella all day on Saturday. We went to Bay Beach, McDonald's, the library, Culver's for ice cream and then to Marquette Park to play on the swings. This was Ben during his nap after lunch. We had a very fun and busy day! I felt the same way yesterday....

Mary Madeleine and Her Presents

Lots to Be Thankful for in '07

It will be different not having "Grandpa Ed" around this year, but I'm sure we'll all feel his presence. We all miss him.

I still feel very blessed that my family will all be together, and that no one is sick or overseas or suffering in any way. I am very thankful for that.

I am thankful that my brother talked me into taking in Kelly. I truly feel that she and I saved one another, and I'm so happy she is back to her energetic self. I never thought I would love a pet this much, or that she would mean so much to me. We are two peas in a pod.

I am thankful for my friends, and the new ones I have made. No woman is a failure if she has friends.

I am thankful for my home, with the old furnace and drafty windows. It might not be perfect, but I will always make it the best and most welcoming home I can.

I am thankful that I am and always will be ok on my own. I can take care of myself, and I will never fear being alone.

I am thankful that I am content, and hopefully that will continue into 2008!

Happy B-day Ben!

I hosted a birthday party for my nephew, Ben, on Dec. 9th. He turned two!

Early Gifts

Apparently my niece, Mary, couldn't resist opening up her Christmas presents from me a little early. My parents took her gifts with them last week, so my sister wouldn't have to lug them on the plane in January. It looks like she LOVES her new vacuum!

Turkey Day

I hope everyone has a wonderful Thanksgiving. We have a lot to be thankful for this year.

My parents will be in Omaha visiting my sister this year, and I'm thankful that I have siblings close by who include me in their family plans, even if they are with their in-laws. I'm glad I won't be by myself on Thanksgiving.

Garden

I can now see why everyone goes ga-ga over having a garden.

I stopped at my brother's house yesterday, and my sister-in-law told me to pick some fresh tomatoes, beans, carrots and green onion from their garden. She also picked me some fresh rosemary, basil and pesto. When I got home I cut up some tomatoes, green pepper (store bought), onion and some of the herbs and stirred it all together with a little olive oil. Oh my gosh! The salsa-like concoction was so much fresher and tastier than anything I would buy in a store.

This week I'm going to grill up some pork and use some of the herbs. I can hardly wait to see how it tastes. Yum!

If I have one goal for next summer, it is to build my own garden, even just a small one. I'd like some tomatoes, onion, carrots and beans. Maybe some peppers. That's all I need.

Good Bye, Grandpa

My Grandpa Ed, at the age of 87, passed away peacefully last evening.
He was my mother's father, and the only grandfather I ever knew. My dad's father died of a heart attack when my dad was only 17.

We knew it was coming. His heart had been failing the last several months. He had been in a nursing home for several weeks, and before then, had been receiving hospice care at his home. My dad told me a few days ago that he had stopped eating solids, and his body was starting to shut down. He wasn't recognizing family as well. The last time I saw him, he thought I was my older sister. Even though we knew it was coming, it still is never easy once it happens, is it?

He and my grandma would've celebrated their 66th anniversary this November. In this day and age, that is pretty unbelievable. It's actually pretty amazing that up until now, I had three grandparents still living.

Grandpa was never the epitome of great health. My family and I seriously wondered how he kept his body going all these years. For decades, he smoked, drank, drove when he shouldn't have, chewed Copenhagen and gambled until the wee hours of the morning at the casino (driving my grandma nuts in the process.) A few years ago he passed out at a black jack table, and we're told that when he "came to" in the ambulance, he kept saying, "hit me, hit me." That still makes me chuckle.

He lived his life and did what he wanted. And hopefully now he is in a very peaceful place. That is all anyone of us can ask for.

Welcome Lily!

I have a new niece: Lily Patricia Matczak! !
7 lbs. 10 oz., 19 in. long.
She has 1o fingers and 10 toes and lots of dark hair; little lips, rosy complexion and the infamous "Matczak" (i.e. wide) nose!

She was born on the same day (July 26) as her cousin, Kate, and a day before her parents' anniversary!

I'm sure my mom (Pat) almost wet her pants when they told her. In her defense, my dad already has two grandchildren named after him (William Bernard and Jack Bernard), my deceased aunt has two (McKenzie Mary and Mary Madeleine) and one is after my grandmother (Kathleen Alice). Heck, one has our family name (Robert Matczak) and another is named after a country (John Ireland). My mom, never one to be subtle, always made it well known that "Patricia Ann" was still not taken when my siblings would throw around potential baby names. Like all 11 others, she'll spoil this one extra rotten.



Lily had lots of visitors at the hospital, including her cousins Isabella and Ben, and twin siblings, Jack and Elle. I heard they seemed to like her in the hospital, but we'll see how they feel about her when she is at THEIR house, playing with THEIR toys, taking away from THEIR attention. That could be interesting!
She is going home today and will probably have lots of visitors. She's a cutie pie!! Of course, I am a little biased...

Two of a Kind

On Sunday night, I bought a lemon pepper chicken at the store. I took off the white meat for the week and decided to let Kelly lick up what was left. She just started devouring everything until I took it away. I didn't think much of it.

Monday afternoon I came home to find some interesting brown spots on the dining room rug! I looked at her, and said, "If you're going to vomit, can you at least wait until we are outside, or can you do it on the linoleum floor like I do when I'm too drunk?? She gave me a guilty face that said, "I couldn't help it..." After using spot remover, wipes and carpet freshener, it came out pretty well. When I was done, I went to lay down on my bed, and she cuddled up next to me. I think it was her way of apologizing.

I really can't be angry. It is partly my fault for letting her devour chicken scraps, which I have never done. And, I have vomited in some pretty interesting places back in the day, so I can relate.

It's a Girl!

No, not for me.
My brother and sister-in-law know they are having a girl, in additional to their one-year-old twins! This will even up the boy-girl ratio for grandchildren in our family. Right now I have six nephews and five nieces, and new baby girl will give us six and six.

The girls were outnumbered for a long time. The first four grand kids were boys (Bill, Logan, Bobby, Jack), so when Kate came along, we were pretty excited. My sisters and I bought her every pink doll, dress and barbie we could get our hands on. We were excited for a baby girl.

Then four years later came McKenzie. In three years, Isabella. In the last 1.5 years, we got Ben, Elle and Jack (twins) and little Mary. In July, another girl!

I love my nephews dearly, but....
Girls rule!!!

Not Today

My mom was recently babysitting my niece and nephew, Isabella and Ben. Ben is just over a year, and his sister is almost 1.5 years. Yes, they are very close in age! When my mom said to her in the afternoon, "Come on Isabella, it's time to take a nap....." She shook her head and said, "not today." Ha! She did end up taking a nap, and a pretty long one. But she also doesn't like to all the time.

Isabella is getting to be pretty smart, and she doesn't act like a 1.5-year-old. I laugh when I think of her saying it, and I like the bluntness to it as well. How much would we just all love to say that when we really feel like it?

May I please have some ketchup with that? Not today.
Are you going to get me that report that I asked for? Not today.
Does my butt look big in these pants? Not today.
Are you dieting? Not today.

Maybe tomorrow, but not today.

12

At Christmastime with the fam, my brother and sister-in-law announced they are expecting! Their twins (Elle and Jack, at left) will be 1 in March, so they will only be 16 months apart from the new baby. Whoa!

The number 12 is two-fold. I'm guessing by now they are about 12 weeks along, or maybe a little more than that. This will also be my 12th niece or nephew, just in my family! My friend jokingly asked if our family plans to start our own zip code. Maybe we will! Hahahaha....

Hey Baby

I went to Omaha this past weekend to visit my sister's family, among them the newest member of our clan, Mary Madeleine (14 weeks). On Saturday we decided to walk around a craft show going on in the Old Market, and I offered to carry little Mary in the BabyBjorn (those Swedes are so clever. I do love them for their Swiss Miss). The Bjorn (with two dots above the "O") is a nifty sling-like contraption that parents can wear to carry infants. Plus, ain't no way some psycho-crazy-kidnapper is ever going to snatch anyone in this thing! And I can see why babies like it. It keeps them warm and cuddly and allows them to see all the action that we see. Look how happy she is!



After about 20 minutes of wearing the Bjorn and all 13 pounds of Mary, my neck did start to hurt a little. And I soon discovered the "looks" and "how cute!" I was getting on the streets weren't for me, but for Mary, especially when she zonked out in the craft tent. Oh well.